A conventional drag mechanism for a double-bearing fishing reel, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication Gazette No. Sho 57-39,027, includes drag members interposed between a handle shaft rotatably supported to a reel body and a main gear supported rotatably with respect to the handle shaft, and includes an adjuster screwably supported to the handle shaft for applying a predetermined load to the drag members. The adjuster is rotatably operated so as to adjust the load applied to the drag members, in other words, to adjust a slipping rotation starting load on the spool.
More particularly the slipping rotation starting load on the spool set by the adjuster is set corresponding to the durability of a fishing line. When the load applied to the fishing line is smaller than the slipping rotation starting load, a driving force of the handle shaft is transmitted from the main gear to the spool and drives it. When the load is larger than the same, the drag members slip so as not to transmit the driving force thereto, or the spool slipping rotates even when the handle stops and also a predetermined braking action is exerted against rotation of the spool.
The adjuster sets the optimum slipping rotation starting load corresponding to a target fish in consideration of the durability of the fishing line, but adjusts the load corresponding to a pulling force of a hooked fish each time a new fish is hooked
Since the adjuster is adapted to operate from a minimum to a maximum load applied to the drag members, it is very difficult to return the adjuster again to the position where the optimum load is applied after being rotatably operated corresponding to the pulling force of the hooked fish. Hence, the adjuster, even when previously positioned to obtain the optimum slipping rotation starting load for fishing the same general kinds of fishes, shifts each time a fish is hooked. Hence, the adjuster must be readjusted to obtain a optimum load, thereby creating the problem in that the fishing reel is inconvenient to use this yielding poor result.